Bible Dictionary

Noah

Rest. The patriarch; son of Lamech (Gen. 5:29–32). When he was 10 years old, Noah was ordained to the priesthood by Methuselah (D&C 107:52). He became a preacher of righteousness and declared the gospel of Jesus Christ, even as Enoch, teaching faith, repentance, baptism, and the reception of the Holy Ghost (2 Pet. 2:5; Moses 8:19, 23–24). His life was sought by unbelievers, but he was preserved by the power of God (Moses 8:18, 26). He and his sons Japheth, Shem, and Ham, and their wives, making eight in all, were saved from the Flood by the ark he had built at the command of God (Gen. 6–8; Heb. 11:7; 1 Pet. 3:20). We learn from latter-day revelation that Noah is also the angel Gabriel (HC 3:386).

The tradition of a great flood is found in nearly every ancient culture. A Babylonian account closely resembles the record in the Bible, but the biblical account differs from all others in its religious value and the purpose of it. The scriptural account teaches that the Flood was sent to cleanse the earth because of the wickedness of the people. Noah and his family were saved because they were righteous (Gen. 6:9; Moses 8:27). The authenticity of the Genesis account of the Flood is confirmed by latter-day revelation as recorded in Moses 7:34, 42–43; 8:8–30. See also Ether 13:2.